Love in a Hopeless Place
by funkypudding
Summary: For Annabeth, luxury was some far off dream that she knew she never could have. Her whole world changes when a Seaweed Brain named Percy plucks her from her miserable life into a new one at the Lotus Hotel, a place where anything was possible. Annabeth soon discovers that the facade of the hotel and the people who work there is just that, a facade. PERCABETH!(:
1. Chapter 1

**New story for Percy Jackson and the Olympians. More Percabeth because I didn't give much in my last Percy Jackson story, The Moon Legacy. Enjoy! (:**

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I have been roaming the streets for days. It's almost been a week since my last meal. I've gotten water of course, but that still doesn't help the fact that I'm dying of starvation. I need food and no one is willing to give me any scraps. It's never been this bad. Ever since Thalia-no, I will not think of her and Luke. They are the last thing I need on my mind. I stumble across the street, peering inside a hotel restaurant. _Food._ I almost collapse at the sight of it. I drag myself to the ally beside the large hotel and wait to see if they bring any scraps out to the trash. I shiver against the wind. The temperature drops drastically as the moon rises. A plastic bag rolls about, and I grab it, wrapping it around my arms to block out the wind and cold. It's slightly better. No one comes down the ally way. Good, because I don't think I can run away from someone in this state like I did with the rest. I close my eyes and find myself being lifted from the ground. Maybe I'm dying. At the moment, I don't care what happens. I'm already dead. I bounce against something as it carries me. Wow, the elevator to Heaven or Hell sure is bumpy. I can barely move or struggle against whatever force this is because I'm so weak. I manage to open my eyes to see two beautiful sea green ones staring back, locks of black, silky hair going into them.

"Don't worry, you will be okay soon." He whispers and flashes a beaming white smile.

"Hunger, for a whole week will actually take a while to recover from." I contemplate deliriously.

"Well, aren't you a wise girl." He chuckles. I close my eyes again, drifting off to a light sleep. I feel myself being laid down on a bed. It is like laying on a cloud. The sea green eyes let me go and someone pulls soft blankets to my chin.

"Night." I breath.

"Night, Wise Girl." The boy chuckles as everything drifts to darkness and I have my first night without nightmares in a long time.

* * *

When I wake up, I panic. As soon as my eyes land on the canopy above my soft cloud-like bed, instead of the black trash bag I may have draped over myself if I was lucky, I sit up straight, looking around. I was in a massive room and by the looks of it, a hotel room. Out a door, I could see an overstuffed blue couch sitting in front of an enormous T.V. One door led to what I would guess to be the bathroom. The last door is a sliding glass one that led out to a balcony that overlooked a bay. From here, it seems that we were very high up in the building. My canopy bed was blue and almost seems to imitate that water in the bay with all its unusual patterns. I lay down, my head dizzy from sitting up so suddenly. That's when I see the tray of food sitting on a table next to the bed. I gasp when I see how perfect the plate of food looks. A small bowl of oatmeal, sliced apple, and a few pieces of toast are arranged beautifully on the plate, almost making me not want to mess it up. Almost. I grab the first apple wedge and bite into it. It is sweeter than the apples I find on the streets. It reminds me of my childhood. I stuff myself with the rest of the food on the plate. It looked to be so little but my stomach can only hold so much right now. Someone enters the room. I sit up, slower this time, to see who it is. It's the man who brought me here.

"Looks like Wise Girl is awake." He smiles, showing off his bright white teeth. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yes." I say quietly. "Why am I here?" His expression turns playful.

"I was just helping you out. If you want to go, by all means, try the streets again." He gestures to the door. I am silent for a moment before I shake my head. I do not want to go back on those streets ever again. "See, that's why I pulled you out of the trash last night. It's what I do." I look around, half expecting more homeless people to walk in.

"This is a homeless shelter." I ask. He makes a half grin.

"I guess you could say that." He shrugs. "But if you stay, you need to earn it." He says, trailing off as he approaches the bed, picking up the tray and moving it around to the door to pick up on his way out.

"Like a job?" I ask. He nods.

"What are you good at?" He asks, his eyes filled with curiosity.

"Um, I've always wanted to be an architect since I was really little. I guess you could say that I'm smart. I haven't been to school in a while but when I was, my teachers said if I kept working at my pace, I could skip grades." I explain, wanting to go on but deciding against it.

"Interesting but nothing here deals with that. We do have an opportunity in our top restaurant. How are you at waitressing?" I shrug at his suggestion.

"I have no idea, I've never tried it." He shakes his head and laughs, sounding as pure and raw as a wave crashing against the sand.

"No need for experience. No one here has it anyway." He remarks. "When you're ready, go ahead and take a shower once I have some new clothes sent up. Then you can come down to the lobby and we can discuss the terms of you staying here." He says, typing something into his phone. I nod understandingly when something pops into my head.

"What's your name?" I ask suddenly.

"What?" He asks, looking up from the screen.

"Your name, Seaweed Brain." I roll my eyes.

"Percy Jackson. What about you, Wise Girl?"

"Annabeth. Annabeth Chase." Percy Jackson smiles.

"Well, Ms. Chase, welcome to the Lotus Hotel." As he leaves, I feel my eyes pop. _The _Lotus Hotel? The most famous hotel in Nevada-no the entire country? And I have a job here? I drag myself out of the wonderfully comfortable bed and into the bathroom. So the most famous hotel in the country is run by homeless people? Who would've known? I certainly wouldn't. I guess it does make sense. I feel that homeless people would work harder to stay in a place like this. The bathroom also has a blue theme, the towels and tiles a dark blue while everything else is pretty much white or light blue. I turn on the water and strip of my torn clothes. My jeans are so worn that tears run all through it. My t-shirt is crusted with dirt, sweat, and sewage. My jacket that I found is covered in holes and stains. Percy had the forethought to pull off my shoes before putting me into the bed. When they were on, I could see my toes, or sometimes my mismatched socks, through the holes. Once in the shower, I try to run my fingers through my hair. It doesn't work as my fingers get caught in a mass of knots and dirt. The greasiness of my scalp makes me shudder. I probably haven't rinsed my hair in at least a week. I honestly don't remember the last time I had actual shampoo to wash it, unless you count the times I used hand soaps in the bathroom. After several minutes of yanking and pulling, I finally detangle my hair with a comb and find myself able to run my fingers through it as I wash it. After washing and rinsing, I step out of the shower and into a fluffy towel. I dry off and pull on a robe that hangs on the back of the door. I peak out of the bathroom to see a pile of clothes sitting on the bed. I take it with me back to the bathroom. In the pile, I find a grey blouse and jeans. A dark green light jacket is folding with the outfit. I pull that on over the blouse. The back of the jacket has a flower on it. The lotus flower, I would guess, to represent the Lotus Hotel. Black tennis shoes and black socks come with the rest of the clothing. I pull them on as well. Then I brush my slightly damp hair into a ponytail. I almost walk past the long mirror in the bedroom on my way to the door. I haven't seem myself so clean in forever. My face is scrubbed free of any dirt or grime left from my time on the streets. My hair is soft and tangle free. MY clothes do not have holes in them. The only problem is how the clothes hang on me, like I was anorexic or something. The clothes seem so baggy even though I saw that they were a size small. I walk away from the mirror. It really bothers me. I need to get healthy again and the only way might be to work here, to earn money to buy food. I walk out the door and straight into a girl standing outside of it. She squeals in surprise and stumbles back, her eyes wide in shock.

"Oh my, you aren't Percy." She says, bringing her hand to her lips. I get a whiff of cinnamon when she talks. Her golden brown bangs come down, almost in her dark, almond-shaped eyes. That's all I can see of her hair because the rest is under those hat things that nuns wear. Her skin is milky pale, almost like the white on her nun alb.

"No, why would you think I was him?" I ask, closing the door behind me. That's when I see the letters on the door.

"I don't know, maybe the fact that this is his room." The girl says from behind me but I already know. It is his name written out boldly.

"Oh." Is all I say. Percy had me sleep in his room? What about him? Add to the fact that I was completely filthy and slept in his bed.

"You must be one of those kids he brings in from the streets. It's the sweetest thing. Percy brought me in a while ago and look at what I've become." She sweeps her hand at her attire. Yep, definitely a nun.

"Congratulations." I smile. The girls smiles even wider.

"Thanks. I'm Calypso by the way. What's your name?" She continues.

"Annabeth." I say, starting down the hall, seeing the elevator at the end of it. Calypso squeals and follows me, talking about all the nicknames she could give me.

". . .or Bethy or Anna." Before she can start again, I interrupt her.

"No, please. No nicknames. Annabeth is just fine." I say, glancing at the doors on either side of us. Each has a name written across it. I see names like Grover, Travis, Silena, Zoe, and even more.

"Yeah, you're right. Annabeth is such a pretty name." Who knew nuns talked so much?

"How old are you?" I ask in-between her words while pushing the button for the elevator.

"Twenty-two. Percy is eighteen, if you were going to ask. How old are you?" She asks, her eyes twinkling. I get into the elevator and press the lobby button.

"Seventeen." I reply, letting her drown out the jazzy music with her talking about when she was seventeen as we descend. When the doors open, I almost feel like I just broke the surface of the ocean, getting air after a long swim. Calypso finally waves goodbye and heads what I think may be the chapel.

* * *

**In the story, I am going to make as many characters as I remember in Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Heroes of Olympus. Tell me your favorite characters from the series and I will feature them in this story. Review, eat pudding, and check out my other stories! -The super to your pop(:**


	2. Chapter 2

**I really really really like this story so far so here is a super long chapter(:**

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"So, you met our nun." I hear Percy behind me. I whirl around.

"Yeah and I don't think I've heard one talk as much as she did." He laughs and I instinctively lean in to hear better. I shake my senses and lean back once I realize what I'm doing. His musical laughter just draws me to him. If I were illogical, I would always try to make him laugh. It would seem to be worth all the trouble, but I'm logical and know it would be a waste of time.

"Come, I can show you around and introduce you to a few of your co-workers. First, that's Grover sitting at the lobby desk." Percy says, pointing to a man sitting at the desk and bringing me down a hallway. The first door on our left is the pool. The boy opens the door and shows me inside. The pool is gigantic, with glass walls to see out into the private garden around the hotel. People cover the chairs sitting around it and kids and adults alike swim in the pool. A waterfall is on one end while swimming lanes line the other. "This is Reyna." The boy gestures to the lifeguard, who merely takes her eyes off the water for a moment to glance at me before gluing them back to the pool. She has long black hair pulled into a ponytail. Her features would be pretty if not for the hard expression on her face. Her tan skin is unblemished and perfect.

"Who's this, Percy?" She says coldly. The she whistles loudly. "Hey! No shoving!" A few kids in the pool jump and back away from each other at her yell.

"This is Annabeth, our new waitress." He says, unfazed by her scream. Reyna snickers.

"To replace Alice? Good luck with that." Percy scowls and directs me out of the pool room and across the hall to the exercise room.

"Alice? Who's that?" I question as we walk into the massive room with exercise equipment everywhere.

"No need to worry about that." He says darkly. His face lights up when he sees a small group of people. We approach to see two kids gathered around one boy with huge muscles, pumping the dumbbells with ease. There must be at least two hundred pounds that on that bar. Percy smirks at my awe. "This is Charles, but we call him Beckendorf." Then he points to each of the kids next to the boy who still pumps the bar. "Jake." He calls the kid who has a cast on his arm. "And Nyssa." He calls the girl with a red bandanna around her head. "Beckendorf." He calls. The boys pauses and looks up at us.

"Percy?" He asks and then notices me.

"I'd like to introduce you to Annabeth Chase." The boy on the bench nods to me while his muscular friends shake hands with me. "Have fun on your break, guys!" Percy calls as we leave the room. We continue to go around the hotel for Percy's tor and introductions. I meet three sisters in the salon. One was the cutest thing you've ever seen, another was one of the most beautiful girls I've ever met, and the last would have been almost as beautiful as her sister if she didn't have such an ugly attitude. Their names were Lacy, Silena, and Drew. We meet Travis and Conner in the hallway at one point. They were janitors. They each salute to Percy before going about their business. Then we meet the security. A girl named Clarisse has huge muscles that are probably thicker than four of mine. She is the head of security. There is also Chris, Frank, Butch, and Gwen. I smile kindly at each one of them before being dragged to a new place in the hotel. As we cross the hall to get to the elevator, I run straight into a scrawny boy. We fall on our behinds, him dropping some device in his hand. I hear a sharp crack from it. I wince as he gasps and picks up the broken pieces of his phone.

"Oh, that really sucks, Leo. I'm going to have to get you a new one." Percy exclaims, typing something into his phone before helping me up.

"I'm so sorry." I say to Leo.

"It's okay, I guess. Everything I had was on there. Like my high score on Flappy Bird." He hangs his head. Percy laughs.

"I'm not sure my mechanic understands why he has a phone in the first place." He says smiling. Leo gasps.

"No, I use it for work, I swear!"

"That's better." Percy smirks and walks around the boy to the elevator. We go to what I think is the kitchen. A girl named Katie cooks there, smiling at us and starting to stir in a bowl as we greet her. She is extremely beautiful, like everyone else here seems to be. She has wavy brown hair covered with a white chef's hat that has a flower pinned to the side. Her emerald green eyes sparkle as she continues cooking all kinds of vegetables. I see no meat in sight.

"Why isn't there any meat?" I ask Katie, who wipes her hands on the flowered apron she wears over her chef's uniform.

"Because I'm a vegetarian. I have other people who deal with meat." She announces, grabbing a huge knife from her assorted cutlery. She proceeds to chop up food on her cutting board. "Would you like something? Michael is still on his break so no meat as of now." I smile at the thought of food. After a meal slightly bigger than breakfast, Percy leads me out of the kitchen and introduces me to Rachel, his assistant. The red-headed girl with piercing green eyes smiles warmly and politely shakes my hand, but inside those green eyes, I see her insanity.

"I like you." She contemplates, smiling at me even wider. I look over to Percy, who shrugs and grins.

"I guess yo're pretty cool, too." I say.

"Are you going to introduce her to Octavian?" Rachel giggles.

"Um, yea-" He starts, but she holds out her hand.

"Say no more. I'll take her." Rachel says, hooking my arm in hers and dragging me to the elevator before Percy could say another word. We go down to the bottom floor, the garage. We walk through a few cars in the cold air until we finally reach the warm little booth that has the word _Terminus _on the outside. We go inside to see a skinny blind kid doodling over the pages of a book in the middle of a mountain of stuffed animals. He lifts his head and focuses his eyes on Rachel, smiling widely. Without his head bent down and his shaggy hair in the way, I can see his drawings perfectly. They're all of Rachel. He's pretty decent, too. I could never draw creatively. It has to be more mathematical.

"Hey, Rach, who's this?" The boy asks, his eyes flickering between us.

"Annabeth. She's taking Alice's position." Rachel replies. Octavian nods understandingly.

"Who's this Alice person?" Rachel stares at me and pales while Octavian lifts an eyebrow.

"You don't know about Alice?" He asks, not curiously or even incredulously. It is amusement that sparkles in his eyes. I shake my head, befuddled.

"Can you _please_ tell me?" I plead to the couple. Rachel glances nervously at Octavian, who chuckles darkly.

"I believe that is Percy's story to tell you, not ours. You can ask him about it." He smiles coldly before cursing as a car rolls in. "I got to go or Terminus will have my head mounted on a pedestal. Update me on what you know, Annabeth, Rachel." He calls, rushing out of the booth. I follow the silent girl out of the booth and back into the building. Her skin was still pale when we met up with Percy and dark skinned girl with French Toast colored hair.

"This is Hazel." I smile warmly to the girl, who reflects my expression.

"You look lovely today, Annabeth." She had a bit of a Southern twang and her golden eyes twinkle with intelligence. I can tell that if something isn't hidden in those eyes, something horrible, then we will be great friends.

"You do as well, Hazel." The girl's smile widens. She leaves our little group with Rachel after exchanging a few words with Percy that I can't hear.

"Want to get dinner at the restaurant you're working at?" Percy asks as we get on a nearby elevator. I join him as we ascend to the top floor, the restaurant. I almost squeal out loud when the doors open and we step out. It must be a five star restaurant just by the looks of it. Chandeliers and crystal are everywhere. The waiters and waitresses are in extremely fancy uniforms, almost as fancy as the guest clothing themselves. Percy brings me through another door and hands me a dress bag.

"What's this for?" I ask as he pushes me into the bathroom.

"You need to be dressed right if you are going to meet any of or customers." He states simply and leaves me in a changing room. I huff and unzip the bag, not being able to contain my gasp. I thought it would be a simple blouse and skirt. I was wrong. It is an green evening gown. Shiny ruffles cover the bottom while the top is tight and smooth against my chest. The neck line goes straight across my chest and shoulders, practically strapless. White lotus flowers cover the line beautifully. I pull it on along with the short white heels Percy gave me and pull down my hair. I take a look in the mirror, ignoring my thinness. With my clean face and glistening blonde curls, I almost look like a flower princess. I almost collapse when I take my first step. Dang, I'm too weak. I practice down the room and get used to it. Good enough. I meet Percy, who has changed into a black suit with a white lotus on his label.

"It's beautiful, Percy." I say, smiling. He just nods in silence and after a while, he offers his arm. I take it and let him lead me out to the restaurant. We sit in one of the booths. Slowly, customers' heads start to turn toward us. Finally, one man gets up and walks over.

"Percy." He says icily and slides in across from us.

"Mr. Zeus. Nice to see you here, sir." Percy says just as coldly. He takes my hand ans squeezes it under the table. Maybe for reassurance? From what?

"Who's this?" The man says, looking to me with his electric blue eyes. There is a pang in my stomach. They remind me too much of Thalia.

"Annabeth, our new waitress." Percy says, waving over one of the waitresses. The girl has choppy dark hair, but is extremely beautiful at the same time. Kind of like Silena from the salon. "Piper, could you get me some water?" He asks. The girl nods.

"Wold you like some, too, Mr. Zeus?" Piper asks. The man shakes his head and Piper disappears.

"That will be one of your co-workers up here in the restaurant." Percy whispers.

"Jackson, have you thought about my offer?" Zeus asks. Percy flinches.

"Are you sure you want to talk about this now?" The boy asks and Zeus chuckles.

"I guess we won't in front of this girl. Maybe later." He says darkly.

"Yeah, we wouldn't want to cause an. . .altercation and get my father's attention, would we?" Zeus' face pales.

"No, Poseidon has nothing to worry about." He booms angrily and gets p to leave. Percy laughs and waves.

"How could you be laughing? That guy is scary?" I say, looking to where the man had sat moments before.

"He's nobody to worry about. He's my dad's old 'friend' and works at the hotel across the street. The less extravagant Olympus Hotel." Percy says simply, accepting the drinks Piper arrives with. "Before you go, Piper, this is Annabeth. She will be joining you as a waitress. I trust you to teach her the ropes tomorrow?" Piper smiles at me and nods.

"Of courses, I won't mind to. Nice to meet you, Annabeth." She says, shaking hands with me. After the girl leaves, someone else slides into the booth. Another man, this one pale with black hair and dark eyes.

"Another friend of my dad's. He's also Bianca's father." Percy whispers in my ear. "He owns a recording studio down the block. A bunch of famous people have gone through there." The man scowls at Percy.

"Jackson. How's your father?" He grumbles.

"Poseidon's just fine. How are _you, _Mr. Hades? Any new artists come through your studio?" The man doesn't say anything for awhile. Then, he finally speaks._  
_

"Just a few. Is this your new waitress? The one to replace Alice?" Hades asks. I groan inwardly. Who is this Alice?

"Yes, Annabeth is our new waitress." Percy says, cutting his words. Hades grunts and gets up to leave.

"Nice meeting you, Annabeth." He drawls before leaving.

"Bye, Mr. Hades! Have a sunshiney day!" Percy waves for this man as well. I stare at him.

"That guy was scarier than Zeus!" I say astounded. Percy laughs quietly.

"Wait until you meet their kids. Zeus' are fun to hang around and Hades' son and daughter, who you haven't met yet, are simply full of life!" Percy exclaims.

"When can I meet them?" I say, looking around the restaurant.

"Um, why not next week? There is a big convention coming up and I think I invited them." He says thoughtfully. "Now lets get some food." I smile at the sound of that.

* * *

**Gotta love Percy's laid back attitude with important people. I didn't know that Hades kinds were _full of life_. Har dee har har. Gotta love puns(: I love Octavian in this for some reason. It was lots of fun to write about him. Oh, and guess who I've decided to put in this story as the hunters of dust-er I mean, maids. Hint: they are from my other stories The Moon Legacy and Growing Darkness. Review and eat pudding!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Sooo, I had this chapter typed up(with my friend Super Pop) and it didn't save and it took awhile for me to type it again because of school. Luckily, today I don't have school though I should probably be doing my homework. . .**

* * *

After my extremely delicious meal, Percy calls Rachel back in and has her lead me to my new room. We go back to the floor I woke up in and stop in front of a blank door with no name. The names Piper and Zoe are on either side.

"Don't worry, we'll get your name on the door soon. Also, I think we are redecorating the rooms so the default grey will be gone." Rachel smiles before slipping my the key and leaving. I slide it into the slot and hear the click of the door unlocking. I open it and walk into my new home. It is almost exactly like Percy's room, only it's grey. The comforter for my canopy bed is like the storm clouds that have started to cover the moon outside. I struggle to set the alarm clock next to the bed to 7;00 so that I could get up and have breakfast before I was supposed to meet Piper at nine. After five minutes, I finally set it and change into the cotton pajamas that were in the dresser under the TV in my room that sits across from my bed. They are white and grey, like the room. I love it. It is plain and simple and modern. I brush my hair out and don't bother turning on the TV before getting between the sheets. That can wait for another time. As soon as my head hits the pillow, I feel myself drifting off on a cloud that overlooks a sea as green as Percy's eyes and a sky that is as blue as Thalia's.

* * *

I wake up to my alarm clock buzzing brightly in my ear. I groan and punch some buttons on it. It immediately stops as I sit up groggily. I guess I'm catching up on my sleep, seeing as I probably haven't had a full night's sleep in the last year, ever since the last time I saw Thalia.

_I hold my stomach as it growls again, glancing at Thalia and Luke, hoping they didn't hear. Both glance back at me sadly. I smile apologetically and hope that she doesn't-_

_"We have to get food, Luke." Thalia complains again. I curse mentally as she says it again. She has this ridiculous idea that she has to steal for us to eat, but Luke won't allow it._

_"No, Thalia. We may be homeless, but we will not steal for food. It isn't right and I still have my morals unlike some people." Luke says coldly, scowling and making his scar ripple. He has refused to steal because his father was a big criminal, a thief, that was put away in jail, leaving his son alone in a house that was about to be foreclosed. He never wanted to be like his father, never go as low as him just for some decent food. Thalia goes silent, but I can still practically feel the anger rolling off her as we walk through the alleyways. She refuses to beg for food, but I have as well as Luke. There isn't much else we can do. Nobody is willing to give us a job. We huddle against a dumpster and shiver against the cold._

_"Luke-"_

_"I'm going to look around for some scraps. You stay here." Luke says quickly before Thalia can ask again. He gets up and leaves the alleyway. Not a minute later, Thalia drags me to my feet._

_"Thalia! What are you doing? Luke said to wait here." I say, looking around for the blond boy._

_"You really expect me to sit around and starve? Let's get you some food so I can sleep through a night without your stomach to interrupt me." She says, pulling me through the alley and across a street. I follow her into a store. A clerk looks up from his book, taking in our ripped clothing. Thalia gives him her sweet smile before dragging me away into one of the aisles. _

_"Here, I found this on the ground a few hours ago. It should distract him enough that he will think that I'm not buying anything as we walk out the store." Thalia whispers quickly and hands me a dollar. I am stunned as I take it in. A real dollar. It's been awhile since I've held one. "What are you waiting for?" Thalia hisses, handing me a candy bar off the shelf and shoving me out of the aisle as she stuffs her clothes with food. I take a few steps toward the cashier, smiling almost too big. He smiles back._

_"I would like to buy this." I say politely, dropping the candy on the table and handing him the dollar. He opens the cash register and puts it inside. Then, he takes out a few pennies and places them in my hand._

_"Have a good day, miss." He winks as he slides me the candy bar. I fail to wink back as I notice Thalia walking out the door. Instead, I give a little wave before almost running out the door. I meet with Thalia and we run back to the alley._

_"I did it!" She says over and over, pulling food out of her stuffed jacket. I almost cry when I see all the food. And it's ours. Somebody walks up from behind us. _

_"Hey, I found some bread. . ." We hear Luke trail off when he sees the food in Thalia's arms._

_"Hey! Come back with that merchandise!" We hear the boy from the store call out just as the police sirens start to wail._

_"Oh no, Thalia, what have you done?" Luke yells, bringing us both to our feet and pulling us the opposite way of the store. I run with Luke's hand in mine, Thalia right behind us. Well, she was until she trips and falls to the ground. I come to a complete stop._

_"Thalia!" I scream and try to crouch down to help her, but Luke almost yanks my arm out of my socket._

_"We have to go, Annabeth!" He yells. I am numb as he drags me to the end of the alley. The clerk stops at Thalia's side, pushing her back to the ground just as the police officers arrive and start running down the alley._

_"No!" I scream and break from Luke's grip.  
"No, she brought it on herself. Let's go." Luke calls but I'm too far gone. The last I see of him is his hesitation before running away. I turn back to where two cops are grabbing each of Thalia's arms and dragging her away, her head hanging. _

_"No! Please!" I scream, running towards her but the police have already put her in the car. They shut the door and are off just as I reach the end of the alleyway. Someone takes my arm as I get ready to run towards the car but I know that I wouldn't have been fast enough anyway. I start to cry, collapsing on the cement. Someone pats my shoulder._

_"You'll be okay. She was a bad influence on a girl like you." A voice says in a ridiculously husky tone. The store clerk._

_"Get your hands off me!" I screech._

_"No, it's okay-" I cut him off with a kick to the groin._

_"No, it's not you bozo. You called the cops on my friend." I say, running back into the alley, tear threatening to blur my vision. I stumble and fall into a pile of trash. Or I thought it was trash. It is the food that Thalia got out of the store. I pick up the only candy bar we bought. Why did this have to happen to us? Why can't we have a home? I would like to leave all this food because it's tainted but I know I need it. I gather it all up and put it in the bag I keep on my shoulders that is full of the few things i own._

I hold my head, forcing myself to be calm as the memories tumble in. I can't think of her right now. She probably has found a new home somewhere, maybe in prison, maybe on the streets. I don't like to think of what happened to Luke. I shower again, finding it easier to comb my hair today, and wear a dress I found in my drawer. Rachel said something last night about wearing it today. It is light green with a white apron tied around the waist. Random lotus flowers are pinned on it and on my label I find a blank name card. A lonely flower rolls around my drawer so I pin back my curls with it. I leave the room to find Piper leaving her's at the same time.

"Annabeth! Have you had breakfast yet?" She asks, smiling. She wears the same outfit as I wear now, slightly different from last night's. My guess is that the uniform for dinnertime is fancier than daytime.

"No, I haven't." I say as brightly as I can, my morning thoughts rushing back.

"The we can eat together." She says, looping her arm through mine as we walk to the elevator.

* * *

**Reeeaally long flashback. I just couldn't stop when I started writing it. It took up most of the chapter but it as a purpose, as you can see, it's a part of Annabeth's past. Next chapter will have less flashback and more real time(:**


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